"Cheek to Cheek" is a song written by Irving Berlin in 1934–35,Irving Berlin Collection description from the Library of Congress's online Performing Arts Encyclopedia; retrieved 2012-03-07. specifically for Fred Astaire, the star of his new musical, Top Hat, co-starring Ginger Rogers."Cheek to Cheek" by Fred Astaire, 1935 ; from the University of Virginia's American Studies website, subsection "Manufacturing Memory : 1935-1939"; retrieved 2012-03-07. In the movie, Astaire sings the song to Rogers as they dance. The song was nominated for the Best Song Oscar for 1936, which it lost to "Lullaby of Broadway".The 8th Academy Awards (1936) Nominees and Winners, from the website of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Science (www.oscar.org); retrieved 2012-03-07. The song spent five weeks at #1 on Your Hit Parade and was named the #1 song of 1935. Astaire's 1935 recording with the Leo Reisman Orchestra was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2000.Grammy Hall of Fame page from www.grammy.org; retrieved 2012-04-07. In 2004, Astaire's version finished at No. 15 on AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs survey of top tunes in American cinema. In June 2026, CBS News included the song in its list of the 250 essential American songs of the past 250 years.
Composition & Release The song was composed by Irving Berlin, with a melody drawing similarity to the theme of Chopin's Polonaise héroïque, itself inspired by the Polish folk dance.
On June 26, 1935, Fred and Leo Reisman, along with his Orchestra, worked at ARC (parent company of Brunswick Records at the time) Studios in New York City. They recorded two Irving Berlin compositions, "Cheek To Cheek" and "No Strings (I'm Fancy Free)". The next day, with Johnny Greene's Orchestra, "Isn't This a Lovely Day?" and "Top Hat, White Tie and Tails" were completed. Both singles were released in August, and then at the end of the month, "Top Hat" premiered. "Cheek to Cheek" headed straight to #1, where it stayed for eleven weeks, and finished the #1 hit of 1935. Fred Astaire topped his career high of ten weeks for "Night And Day".
Recorded versions According to the database of secondhandsongs.com, "Cheek to Cheek" has been recorded by 438 different artists as of July 2021.
Release Performer Vocalist Recording date Album Label Source 1935 Guy Lombardo Guy Lombardo 1935 The Boswell Sisters The Boswell Sisters 1956 Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong Ella & Louis August 16, 1956 Ella and Louis Verve 1956Vic DamoneVic Damone1956That Towering Feeling!Columbia 1957 Lou Donaldson feat. Horace Silver Quartet instrumental June 20, 1952 Quartet/Quintet/Sextet Blue Note Cheek to Cheek by Lou Donaldson, secondhandsongs.com. 1957 Marcy Lutes (arr. Gil Evans) Marcy Lutes 1956 or 1957 Debut Decca "'Debut', Marcy Lutes: Overview", Allmusic. 1958 Peggy Lee Peggy Lee January 3, 1958 Jump for Joy Capitol 1958 Doris Day Doris Day February 24, 1958 Hooray for Hollywood Columbia 1958 Ella Fitzgerald Ella Fitzgerald March 1958 Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Irving Berlin Song Book Verve 1958 Billie Holiday Billie Holiday August 1956 All or Nothing at All Verve 1959 Frank Sinatra Frank Sinatra December 1958 Come Dance with Me! Capitol 1976 Alex Harvey Alex Harvey Christmas 1975 The Penthouse Tapes Vertigo 1982 Taco Taco 1981 After Eight RCA Victor 2014 Tony Bennett & Lady Gaga Tony Bennett & Lady Gaga June 2013 Cheek to Cheek Columbia
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